1. Field of the Invention
This description generally relates to the field of table gaming, and more particularly to games played with a gaming tables.
2. Description of the Related Art
There are numerous games played at gaming tables. For example, roulette, craps, and card games played with playing cards.
There are a large variety of playing card games. For example, blackjack, baccarat, various types of poker, LET IT RIDE®, to name a few. Card games may be played with one or more standard decks of playing cards. A standard deck of playing cards typically comprises fifty-two playing cards, each playing card having a combination of a rank symbol and a suit symbol, selected from thirteen rank symbols (i.e., 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, J, Q, K, and A) and four suit symbols (i.e.,  and ). Some games may include non-standard playing cards, for example playing cards with symbols other than the rank and suit symbols associated with a standard deck.
In some instances playing card games involve wagering, where money and/or prizes may be won. In other instances playing card games are played for fun or recreation without wagering. In either case, it is typically desirable to randomize the set of playing cards before dealing the playing cards to the participants (e.g., players and/or dealer). Randomizing is typically referred to as shuffling, which may be performed manually by riffling or interleaving the corners of two stacks of playing cards by hand, or may be performed automatically by an automatic card shuffling machine.
While there may exist variation from casino-to-casino, playing card games typically have a fixed set of theoretical or “true” odds associated with them. The theoretical or true odds are reflected in the schedule of payout or “house” odds associated with the game, and typically provide for a house edge or advantage (e.g., theoretical hold). Many casinos set a house advantage or theoretical hold of at least 0.5%, which means that the house would likely earn 0.5% of every dollar wagered for the particular game over the long term. The house advantage may be as high as 30%, for example for the game Let-It-Ride®.
A casino may, for example, provide a schedule of payout or house odds for blackjack. A typical house odds schedule may provide for a 1:1 or “even money” payout for all winning bets with the exception of blackjack (i.e., initial two cards dealt to player have a total value of twenty-one). A blackjack may be paid at 3:1, unless the dealer also has a blackjack which is typically considered a tie (i.e., push) and no money is exchanged. The theoretical or true odds reflect the statistical probabilities of the occurrence of certain events over a large number of attempts or trials.
The casino typically has a house advantage due to a difference between the theoretical or true odds and the payout or house odds. The casino may achieve a higher house advantage due to specific rules of the game. For example, under most blackjack rules the dealer selects hit cards only after all of the players have completed their hands. This provides the opportunity for the players to draw hands with a value exceeding twenty-one (i.e., bust) and lose, without the dealer having to take any hit cards. Thus, the dealer avoids the possibility of busting, and losing to a player that has already gone bust. Consequently, the house enjoys a further advantage over the players. The casino may obtain a further house advantage by setting the rules with respect to when the dealer must take additional playing cards (e.g., stand on hand with value of a hard or soft 17 points, hit on 16 points, etc.). The casino may obtain a further house advantage by selecting the total number of decks from which the card game will be dealt. Thus, while the basic rules determine the theoretical or true odds of the game, variations in the rules as well as the house odds may effect the house advantage.
At least in blackjack, the theoretical true odds reflect the probability of certain outcomes over a large number of hands, predicated on “perfect play” by a player. Typically, players cannot play perfectly, and may make decisions (e.g., hit or stand, split, double down) that do not accord with the decision that would provide the highest probability of winning (e.g., “basic” strategy). Thus, a highly skilled player may approach the theoretical odds for a game, while a player with less skill will be playing at some level below the theoretical odds for the game. This provides a further advantage to the casino or house. Some players adopt various playing strategies to obtain or to try to exceed the theoretical odds. Some of these strategies are legal, some illegal, and some while legal, are discouraged by certain gaming establishments. For example, a player may play basic strategy as outlined in numerous references on gaming. Some players may track the playing cards that appear on the gaming table using various card counting strategies (e.g., fives count, tens count), also outlined in numerous references on gaming. This may allow the player to adjust the amount of wagers based on whether the cards remaining to be dealt are thought to be favorable or unfavorable. For example, a set or “deck” having a relatively high percentage of playing cards with a value of ten is typically considered favorable to the dealer, while a relatively low percentage of playing cards with values of 2-8 is typically considered favorable to the player. This allows highly skilled players to reduce the casino's theoretical advantage on the game, or on a particular hand or round of a game.
Casinos and other gaming establishments are continually looking for ways to make gaming fresher and more exciting for their patrons. For example, many casinos offer the ability to place bonus wagers and/or progressive wagers. New approaches to varying existing table games are highly desirable.